


Last Call

by SpecialHell



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, First Meetings, M/M, Phone Calls, shrinkyclinks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-17
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-11-21 16:21:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18144560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpecialHell/pseuds/SpecialHell
Summary: Steve is a call centre worker who accidentally dials up Agent Barnes of SHIELD





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is a combination of:  
> inspiration from a random picture of a tumblr post  
> enthusiasm for its existence by folks on my Twitter

Steve glanced up at the clock while he waited for a connection. One more call before the end of the day. At the click of someone picking up, Steve forced a smile into his voice.

 _“Who is this?”_ The man on the end of the line didn’t sound happy. Steve prepared himself to be hung up on, but dived in regardless.

“Good afternoon sir. My name is Steve and I’m calling-”

_“Steve who?”_

“I’m sorry sir, but we don’t divulge personal information.”

_“How did you get this number?”_

Steve paused for a second. He looked over at his calling screen. The number didn’t seem out of the ordinary in any way.

“Sir, may I ask if you live in the Washington DC area? These calls are only intended for those able to vote in DC.”

There was a tense silence, and for a moment Steve thought maybe the man had hung up. Despite the irritation he was getting, Steve couldn’t help but be drawn in by the smoky, gruff tone.

Anyone who spent all day talking on the phone would end up with a thing for voices. Nobody could judge him on that.

_“Who are you and how did you get this number?”_

Steve took a silent breath. The man didn’t sound happy at all.

“The number is randomly generated by our computer system,” Steve explained, working hard to keep his voice professional and not start apologising for upsetting the man.

_“Get me your manager.”_

“Of course, sir. Please hold.”

Steve put the call on hold and blew out a heavy sigh. This wasn’t going to end well. Most of the people who worked here could just raise their hand to get the attention of the manager who walked the floor waiting for someone to need help. Steve, being all of 5 foot 4, had to stand up first. It took barely a minute before Steve’s manager Sam Wilson made it to his booth.

“What’s up?”

“There’s someone asking to speak to you. He doesn’t sound happy at all. I haven’t even got to telling him what we’re calling for yet.” Even though a manager’s job was to be measured and calm no matter the situation, Steve always wanted Sam to be prepared. He had a bad feeling about this.

Sam took Steve’s headset and pressed the button to pull the call off hold.

“Hello, this is the manager. My name is Sam. How can I help you?”

_“I need to know how you got this number. It’s not meant to be in any databases.”_

Sam was taken aback by this, but he kept himself together.

“All of our numbers are randomly generated based on their registered location. If your number has been generated, that means that it’s been registered as a DC line.”

There was silence on the line, and Sam tried to give Steve a reassuring look as he waited.

 _“This is Agent Barnes,”_ the man finally spoke. _“I am an Agent of SHIELD and this line should be untraceable. Something has obviously gone wrong there.”_

“I’m sorry sir, but we don’t have any control over the software.”

Another silence, followed by a tired sigh.

_“You and your employee will need to attend a debriefing. I’ll need this number scrubbed from your data banks, and a transcript of this call, after which it will also need to be scrubbed. Do you understand?”_

“Of course, Agent Barnes.” Steve’s eyes widened at Sam’s words, and he mouthed back ‘Agent?’ Sam shook his head and continued to talk. “I’ll give you my email address, if you’d be kind enough to send over the location of your offices, we’ll be sure to be there.”

Sam reeled off his work email address, and Agent Barnes confirmed the email was sent.

_“Nine-am. Don’t be late.”_

The call disconnected and Steve looked up at Sam with concern.

“Are we fucked?”

“I think a little.”


	2. Chapter 2

Steve stared up at the building they were about to walk into. He was wearing his nicest suit - which wasn’t really that nice, but it was all he could afford - and he’d tried to make his hair behave. Sam was standing next to him, looking annoyingly sharp as always.

“Are we about to get disappeared by a shady government organisation?” Steve asked, trying to make it sound like a joke but not quite succeeding.

“I’m sure they just want us to sign some NDAs and scare us a bit.”

“Well they’re certainly doing that.”

“Come on,” Sam nudged Steve towards the door. “We don’t want to be late.”

 

Sam checked them in at the front desk, and from there they were directed to the twelfth floor. Steve couldn’t stop fidgeting in the elevator, and eventually Sam couldn’t take it. He reached over and flicked Steve in the ear, which earned him an exclaimed ‘hey!’ and a glare, and broke the tension in Steve’s shoulders. When the elevator stopped, Sam stepped out first and looked around as Steve followed.

There was only one door on this corridor, so Sam walked over and knocked. The door was answered by a woman with red hair, who stepped aside without a word. Sam and Steve shared a look of trepidation before stepping into the room.

 

The focal point of the office was a large mahogany desk, behind which sat a man with an eye patch. Sam judged him to be in his fifties. Standing to the left with his arms behind his back was another man. This one couldn’t have been over 35, and his glower did nothing to hide his handsome features.

Steve noticed the man standing behind the desk around the same time Sam did. Despite the unnerving situation they were in, Steve couldn’t help appreciating the view. This guy’s suit cut a perfect line to show off his waist, and his broad shoulders worried the seams of the jacket as he stood at parade rest. Within the space of a few jittery heartbeats, Steve’s mind had gone from ‘Oh God, please don’t let me get shot!’ to ‘Oh God, I want to climb him like a tree!’

From the look Sam shot him, Steve wasn’t hiding it very well.

“Thank you for coming,” the man with the eye patch waved a hand towards the chairs opposite his desk. “My name is Director Nick Fury.”

“Director Fury,” Sam tilted his head in acknowledgement as he and Steve sat down. “I’d like to apologise for this inconvenience.”

“It’s nobody’s fault,” Fury replied, his lips set in something that could almost be called a smile. “Sometimes these things just happen.”

Steve looked between Fury and the man behind him, unsure if he should be saying something.

“This is Agent James Barnes,” Fury indicated towards the man, as if he could read Steve’s thoughts. “He’s the one whose number you called.”

Agent Barnes nodded towards them both, but made no move to speak.

“As I’m sure you can appreciate, these kinds of mistakes can leave a lot of paperwork in their wake.”

“Of course,” Sam’s smile was brittle, but to anyone but Steve it looked genuine. “Whatever we can do to help.”

From behind them, the woman who had opened the door presented each of them a folder.

“Inside here you will find documents that state you do not know the number in question - as in you don’t have it memorised, or written down anywhere. Furthermore, you will not speak of the phone conversation, or of this meeting, to anybody going forward. It’s all pretty standard stuff.”

“You don’t have that number now, right?” Steve spoke up, and the sudden weight of everyone’s eyes on him caused instant regret. “I mean, if the number was registered, that means anyone could call it. So, you’ve changed your number now, right?”

“You are a smart young man,” Fury smiled, this time showing teeth. Steve couldn’t decide if that was better or worse than the previous one. “The number has been burned, yes. However, there is always a chance that someone could use any information you may have accidentally gleaned from your conversation with Agent Barnes against this agency, and by proxy this country.”

Steve bit back his retort - that all he learned is Agent Barnes sounds sexy when he’s angry - and instead nodded once.

“We understand,” Sam replied, opening his folder. Steve followed suit, and began reading the document.

“If you’d like to read through the paperwork before you sign,” Fury interrupted, and Steve looked up to see his expression. Nobody had expected him to read what he was about to sign, not even Sam. “I can have Agents Barnes and Romanoff escort you to a conference room.”

“Oh, I…” Steve didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to inconvenience anyone, but he didn’t feel right about signing something he hadn’t read.

“There’s no rush,” Fury assured. “You can take all the time you need. However, those documents cannot leave the premises.”

“Conference room it is,” Sam spoke up, and Steve gave him a grateful look.

“Gentlemen,” the redhead - Romanoff - called as she opened the door. Sam stood up and gave Fury a courteous head tilt before walking towards the door. Steve followed his lead, and Agent Barnes stepped in line behind them.


	3. Chapter 3

As soon as the doors closed on the elevator, the mood shifted. Romanoff looked over to Barnes, a half-smile-half-smirk on her face.

“You can deal with the escort, right? I promised Clint I’d take him to brunch.”

A soft, amused huff came from Agent Barnes, and Steve’s stomach flipped in response.

“You spoil that boy.”

“Well, what can I say? He’s got great… aim.”

Agent Barnes laughed aloud at that, and Steve had to duck his head to hide his own smile. Sam was seemingly shocked into motionlessness.

“I can handle the paperwork,” Barnes spoke again. “Tell Clint I say hi.”

Romanoff didn’t respond, instead she pressed the numbers on the elevator to get it moving. When they stopped at the tenth floor, Barnes indicated for Sam and Steve to get out.

“Have a nice brunch,” Steve said, unable to keep himself silent any longer. Romanoff gave him a small smile and a head tilt in response. The doors closed, and Steve now had no choice but to turn his attention to Agent Barnes.

The man in question led them to a corner room with a large table surrounded by chairs. He stood by the door as Sam and Steve chose seats and got as comfortable as they could given the circumstances.

“Can I get you a coffee, or water?” This was the first time Barnes had spoken directly to them, and Steve’s breath caught in his throat. Luckily, Sam noticed Steve’s crisis before Barnes did, and he answered for the both of them.

“Water would be great, thanks.”

Agent Barnes nodded once before turning to leave. He closed the door firmly behind himself; a wordless instruction that they weren’t to leave.

“You need to stop making googly eyes at him,” Sam said as soon as Barnes was gone. “He’s going to notice, and he’ll think you’re hiding something.”

“I’m sorry,” Steve cringed and ran a hand through his hair. “He’s just… Have you _seen_ him?!”

“Yeah, I get it. He’s basically your walking wet dream. I’m not judging, just… try and keep it together, ok? Covert spy types are suspicious by nature, and I don’t want to end up in some government oubliette because you couldn’t keep it in your pants.”

Steve swallowed around a sudden lump in his throat and nodded. Without another word, they both turned their attention to the folders they’d been given. They read in silence for a few moments, before the sound of the door drew their attention. Agent Barnes entered with a pitcher of water in one hand and two glasses in the other. He set them all down on the table before moving back into position at the door.

“You could sit down, if you wanted,” Steve ventured, ignoring the glare Sam shot his way. Barnes looked between the two of them, as if considering, before he spoke.

“Would that make you more comfortable?” He asked to both of them.

“Um, yeah, actually,” Sam admitted. Barnes nodded before moving to sit opposite them. Steve forced himself not to stare at the faux-casual way Agent Barnes was sitting; eyes still on the door and ready to spring into action despite his arm resting on the table and his legs spread out in front of him.

Steve felt a kick to his ankle, and looked over to see Sam scowling at him. He conveyed ‘sorry’ with his expression before he looked back at the folder and tried to concentrate.

 

Forty five minutes passed in silence, with Steve sneaking furtive glances at Agent Barnes in between pages of the documents they were expected to sign. Sam was the first to sit back in his chair.

“This all seems fine,” Sam spoke up, and Steve looked up from his own file to glance between Sam and Agent Barnes. “You have a pen?”

Barnes didn’t speak, he just stood up and walked to the back of the conference room, returning seconds later with two ballpoint pens. Sam thanked him and signed all the documents where the little stickers indicated. Steve did the same. The both slide the folders across the desk, and Agent Barnes stacked them together. He thanked them for their time, and escorted them to the elevators. Steve couldn’t suppress the sigh of disappointment when Agent Barnes was out of view.

“I know it sucks,” Sam soothed. “But we didn’t get disappeared, so it’s not all bad.”

Steve took a deep breath before looking over at his manager. His friend.

“Is now a bad time to tell you I’m leaving?” To Steve’s surprise, Sam laughed.

“I’ve been pretending not to know for about three weeks. You finally going back to art school?”

“I got offered a job,” Steve replies. “It’s some kind of retro art thing. All physical media - paints and charcoal, that sort of thing. It doesn’t pay much more than I’m getting now, but it’s a step in the right direction.”

“I’m happy for you,” Sam’s smile was genuine. “We’ll have to celebrate. Pizza at your place tomorrow.”

“We always do pizza at my place,” Steve’s own smile was crooked and fond.

“Yeah, but I’ll pay this time.”

 

 

It was well past 10pm when Steve’s phone started to ring. He was in bed, not quite asleep. Groaning, Steve flailed a hand out towards his phone and pulled it towards him. There was no number. Curious, Steve answered.

“Hmm,” was all he managed to say; his brain not quite back online yet.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” The familiar voice that drifted over the line had Steve sitting up in bed.

“Agent Barnes?”

“Call me Bucky,” came the reply, laughter in the tone.

“How did you…” Steve stopped himself. Of course Agent-- Bucky could get his number. “What…” Bucky laughed softly on the other end, and Steve had to take a deep breath to focus himself. “I wasn’t sleeping, but I’m not exactly awake. You may need to use small words.”

“Alright,” Bucky sounded _happy_ and Steve immediately decided it was a much sexier sound than him angry. “Do you want to go out with me sometime?”

“What?” Steve’s brain short-circuited at the thought.

“I saw you looking,” Bucky was teasing now, and Steve had to shift in his bed to ignore his body’s reaction to it. “You’re not very stealthy.”

“Well I’m not the spy,” Steve retorted. “But you must have been watching me to catch me looking.”

“I was.” The reply was blunt. Honest. Steve felt like he could combust.

“I’d love to go out with you,” Steve replied, almost breathless. “Hell, I’d love to stay in with you, Bucky.” The name sounded strange to Steve’s ears, but the hitch it caused in Bucky’s breath was a very pleasant sound.

“Are you busy Friday night?”

“Nope,” Steve’s voice slurred a little with the word. He could feel himself sinking sideways on the bed, but Bucky’s voice was just so _nice_ and it made Steve feel calm.

“You sound like you’re about to drop off on me, sweetheart.”

Steve’s heart gave an approving thump at the pet name.

“Been a long day,” Steve suppressed a yawn. “Had to sign a bunch of documents, spent most of the day trying not to pounce on this really hot secret agent that I met.”

“Is that so,” Bucky’s voice had dropped into a deep, purring register, and it made Steve shiver even as it soothed him. “Well maybe next time you meet him, you won’t have to stop yourself.”

“Not sure how serious he is,” Steve teased. “I don’t even have his number.”

Bucky’s laugh was rich, and Steve let his eyes slip closed.

“You don’t sound like you’re ready to write anything down.” Steve hummed an affirmative in reply to Bucky’s observation. “How about I put it in your phone myself on Friday?”

“Sounds perfect.”

“Alright. I’m going to let you sleep now, ok? I’ll see you soon.”

“G’night,” Steve mumbled.

“Sweet dreams, Steve.”

The call disconnected, and Steve couldn’t wipe the smile off his face, even as he drifted off to sleep.


End file.
